1921 — Sep 8-10, Flooding, esp. San Antonio and Milam, Williamson Counties, TX — >224

—  224  City of Austin. History of Flooding in Austin. (All TX, not just Austin.)

—>224  Ellsworth (USGS). The Floods in Central Texas in September, 1921. 1923, p. 1.[1]

—  215  Ludlum.  The American Weather Book. 1982, 81.

—  215  National Climatic Center. “Losses in Individual Severe Floods…[US] Since…1902, 122.

—  215  NWS WFO, Dallas/Fort Worth. “Hurricanes…Tropical Storms…N. TX…1874-2008.”

—  215  Roth, David (NWS). Texas Hurricane History.  Jan 17, 2010 update, p. 40.

—  215  San Antonio College. Department of Geography. Introduction to Meteorology Course.

 

Milam County                       (66)

–66  Ellsworth (USGS). The Floods in Central Texas in September, 1921. 1923, p. 6.

 

Robertson County                 (  7)

—  7  Ellsworth (USGS). The Floods in Central Texas in September, 1921. 1923, p. 6.

 

San Antonio, Bexar Co.        (52)

–52  San Antonio and vicinity. Ellsworth. The Floods in Central Texas…Sep, 1921. 1923, p. 5

–51  Ellsworth (USGS). The Floods in Central Texas in September, 1921. 1923, p. 1.

–51  Roth, David (NWS). Texas Hurricane History.  Jan 17, 2010 update, p. 37.

–51  Salinas. “The 1921 flood caused death, destruction, new regulations.” MySA, 4-3-2015.

–49  Sizer.  Texas Disasters: Wind, Flood, and Fire. 2005, p. 113. (Another 22 missing; p. 112.)

 

Travis County (Austin)         (  6)

–6  Ellsworth (USGS). The Floods in Central Texas in September, 1921. 1923, p. 6.

 

Williamson County               (93)

–93  Ellsworth (USGS). The Floods in Central Texas in September, 1921. 1923, p. 6.

 

Narrative Information

 

City of Austin: “This storm event, known as “The Great Thrall/Taylor Storm”, still stands in the record books as the greatest of all continental U.S. rainstorms during 18 consecutive hours. The storm entered Mexico as a hurricane from the Gulf and then drifted northward dropping six inches on Laredo before unleashing on Central Texas. Like the storms of 1998, 1991, and 1981, this storm followed a pattern that ran along the Balcones Escarpment, then centered over Williamson and Travis Counties. At Taylor, 23.11 inches of rain fell in 24 hours. Thrall reported approximately 36 inches in 18 hours and 40 inches of rain in total. There were 224 fatalities across the seven counties that were affected.”  (City of Austin, History of Flooding in Austin)

 

Ellsworth (USGS): “Heavy rainfall over a large area in south-central Texas from September 8 to September 10, 1921, produced great floods which caused the loss of at least 224 lives and damage to property amounting to more than $10,000,000. The most destructive flood in Texas prior to 1921 occurred in December, 1913. That flood…caused the loss of 177 lives and destroyed property valued at more than $8,500,000.

 

“The most densely populated and most highly developed community affected by the flood of 1921 was the city of San Antonio, where 51 lives were lost and property worth more than $3,000,000 was destroyed. It was the disaster at San Antonio that received the most widespread notice in the press, though the aggregate loss of both life and property in other areas far exceeded that at San Antonio. The total rainfall and the run-off per square mile of drainage area were much less in the basin of San Antonio River than in the basins of many other streams in the path of the storm. If the rainfall in the basin of San Antonio River had been as heavy as it was in much of the basin of Little River, in Bell, Milam, and Williamson counties, the destruction at San Antonio would have been so great as to make that actually suffered there seem insignificant…. [p. 1]

 

“The rainfall that caused the flood covered an elliptical area that includes nearly 10,000 square miles, whose longer axis extends southwestward along the Balcones escarpment from Temple beyond San Antonio, a distance of more than 150 miles. The larger streams that cross this area, all flowing southeastward, are Brazos, Colorado, Guadalupe, and San Antonio rivers. The counties within the storm area are Bell, Milam, Williamson, Travis, Hays, Comal, and Bexar…. [p. 2.]

 

“The total number of lives lost will never be known, but the best estimates available indicate that at least 224 people were drowned, most of whom were Mexicans who lived in poorly constructed

houses, built along the low banks of the streams. Undoubtedly many others were drowned who were never reported missing. Many bodies were carried miles and buried in sand, mud, and debris along the river bottoms. Along Little and San Gabriel rivers bodies were found six months or more after the flood.

 

“A total of 52 lives were lost in San Antonio and vicinity, as follows: On San Pedro Creek, near South Flores and Mitchell streets, 15; on San Pedro Creek between West Commerce Street and the mouth of Alazan Creek, 10; on Alazan Creek between West Commerce Street and the mouth of San Pedro Creek, 20; on Apache Creek between Elmendorf Lake and South Brazos Street, near Tampico Street, 3; on San Antonio River at Newell Avenue, four blocks south of Breckenridge Park, 3; and at San Antonio River crossing, south of San Jose Mission, in the southern suburbs of the city, 1.

 

“The greatest loss of life in Williamson and Milam counties occurred on Little River and its chief tributary, San Gabriel River and its branches. At least 159 bodies were recovered, and undoubtedly many others were never found. Maynard Robinson, division master mechanic, and F. W. Leatherbury, division engineer, of the Gulf, Colorado & Santa Fe Railway, were drowned near Cameron by the capsizing of a boat from which they were inspecting the railroad bridge over Little River. At or near Thorndale and Rockdale 45 bodies were recovered; at Lanesport, on San Gabriel River near the east line of Williamson County, 23; at San Gabriel, 10; on Alligator Creek, 5; at Robyland farm, near Taylor, 4; at Elm Grove, 7 miles southeast of Taylor, 29; in immediate vicinity of Taylor, 6; at Lawrence Creek, 2; at Redville gin, 2. Along the Brazos River bottoms between Gause and Valley Junction 20 negroes were drowned, 7 of them in Robertson County. In Travis County 6 negroes were drowned on the farm of George Begg near the mouth of Onion Creek…. [pp. 5-6]

 

“In the storm of September 9 and 10, which originated in an area of low pressure in the Gulf of Mexico and passed inland to central Texas, the rainfall was the greatest recorded in the United States for an equal length of time…. [p. 7]

 

(Ellsworth, C. E. The Floods in Central Texas in September, 1921 (Water-Supply Paper 488). USGS, Department of the Interior, 1923, 72 pages.)

 

NWS WFO Dallas/Fort Worth: “September 8-10, 1921: A weak hurricane moved onshore near Tampico, Mexico, and mixed with a weak cold front, over south central Texas, bringing a United States record of 36.4 inches of rain in 18 hours to Thrall. The floods killed 215 people and caused 19 million dollars in damage over central Texas. About six tornadoes occurred.”

(NWS WFO, Dallas/Fort Worth. “Hurricanes…Tropical Storms…N. TX…1874-2008.”)

 

Roth: “September 7-11th, 1921…a tropical storm rapidly spun up in the Bay of Campeche. It progressed northwest into Mexico and crossed the Rio Grande. After passing inland into Texas on the 8th, it could barely be identified as a cyclone, except for its associated deluge that drifted northward through Texas. At Taylor, 23.11″ of rain fell in 24 hours. A new 18 hour rainfall record for the United States was set in Williamson County when 36.40″ fell. Thrall reported nearly 40 inches of rain in total, 38.2″ in a 24 hour period…..

 

“Torrential rains accompanying the decaying system caused one of the most destructive floods in San Antonio’s history. The waters rose so rapidly (a flash flood) that automobiles were deserted and the occupants sought safety in high buildings. Nearly seven feet of water stood in the large hotels, theaters, and stores. In San Antonio alone, 51 lives were lost in the flooding and damage was estimated at $5 million. The largest floods occurred on the Little and San Gabriel Rivers north of Austin and south of Temple. Along the Little River, at least 159 drowned. Total damages were estimated near $19 million. In all, 215 died due to the flood in the five county area around San Antonio.” (Roth, David (NWS).  Texas Hurricane History.  Jan 17, 2010 update, pp. 39-40.)

 

Salinas: “In 1921, the deadliest and most destructive flood in San Antonio history swallowed the streets of downtown. Along with $5 million in damage, the flash flood that barreled through San Antonio caused 51 deaths locally.

 

“The flood began on Sept. 7, 1921, after remnants from a hurricane traveled to Williamson County, mainly the towns of Taylor and Thrill, and dropped 23.11 inches of rain in less than a day, according to “The Floods in Central Texas in September, 1921,” report by the U.S. Geological Survey.

 

San Antonio College: “Perhaps the greatest rainstorm in Texas history covering most of Central and East-Central Texas with 20 to 40 inches of rain. It was actually the remnants of a hurricane which moved northward from Mexico after landfall on the Mexican Gulf coast. Taylor Texas reported 23.11 inches in 24 hours and Austin received 19.03 inches in 24 hours. At Thrall Texas near Cameron Texas, 38 inches of rain was measured in 24 hours, and 36.4 inches in 18 hours, causing record flood heights on the Little River and Brazos River. Record flood stages occurred on the Colorado, Guadeloupe and San Antonio Rivers. The downtown section of San Antonio was completely inundated which was the rational for construction of the Riverwalk flood control project. 215 deaths.”  (San Antonio College)

 

Sources

 

City of Austin. History of Flooding in Austin. Accessed 11-19-2008 at:  http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/watershed/floodhistory.htm

 

Ellsworth, C. E. The Floods in Central Texas in September, 1921 (Water-Supply Paper 488). Washington, DC: United States Geological Survey, Department of the Interior (Government Printing Office), 1923, 72 pages. Accessed 11-22-2017 at: https://pubs.usgs.gov/wsp/0488/report.pdf

 

Ludlum, David M. The American Weather Book. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1982.

 

National Climatic Center. “Late Reports. Losses in Individual Severe Floods in the United States Since July 1902,” page 122 in Climatological Data National Summary, Vol. 27, No. 1, Jan 1976. Asheville, NC: NCC, Environmental Data Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce. Google digitized. Accessed 12-3-2014 at: http://books.google.com/books?id=UyMIAAAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office, Dallas/Fort Worth, TX. Hurricanes and Tropical Storms that have Affected North Texas From 1874 to 2008.  Fort Worth, TX: NWS, Sep 11, 2009 modification. Accessed at:  http://www.srh.noaa.gov/fwd/?n=texashurricane

 

Roth, David (National Weather Service). Texas Hurricane History. Camp Springs, MD: NWS.  1-17-2010 update. Accessed 11-22-2017 at: http://www.hpc.ncep.noaa.gov/research/txhur.pdf

 

Salinas, Rebecca. “The 1921 flood caused death, destruction, new regulations.” San Antonio Express-News, 4-3-2015. Accessed 11-22-2017 at: http://www.mysanantonio.com/150years/major-stories/article/The-1921-flood-caused-death-destruction-new-6177194.php

 

San Antonio College, Geography Department. “Lecture 7, Texas Weather,” Introduction to Meteorology Course.  Accessed 2-2-2009 at:  http://www.accd.edu/sac/earthsci/sgirhard/1370.090/chap7.htm

 

Sizer, Mona D.  Texas Disasters: Wind, Flood, and Fire. Lanham: A Republic of Texas Press Book, 2005.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[1] Makes clear that the number of 224 lives lost is a minimum and that “Undoubtedly many others were drowned who were never reported missing.”